New Delhi: Chant 'Jai Bajrangbali' while casting vote says PM Narendra Modi

Ankola/Bengaluru/New Delhi : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday urged the people of Karnataka to say 'Jai Bajrangbali' when they cast their vote to "punish" the Congress for its "culture of abuse", as BJP leaders stepped up attack on the Opposition party over its election manifesto promise of banning the Bajrang Dal.

Hitting back, the Congress alleged that Modi and his party are refusing to speak about the "scam-ridden" BJP government in Karnataka and are "merely looking for lame-duck excuses to polarise the election". The party defended its stand against the Bajrang Dal, saying the Constitution prescribes action against any individual and organisation spreading hatred or enmity.

Addressing a public meeting in Uttara Kannada district, Modi said the Congress and its leaders hate and abuse him because he has crashed their "corrupt system".

"In this election, Congress is seeking votes in the name of its leader who is retiring...the other way in which they are seeking votes is by abusing Modi... .

“Will anyone in Karnataka accept this culture of abuse? What will you (people) do this time? Will you punish them? Will you punish the abusers?... When you press the button in the polling booth, punish them by saying ‘Jai Bajrangbali’,” he added.

The Prime Minister also urged the audience at all his rallies to raise the chant of ‘Bajranjbali ki Jai’ with him, besides his usual slogans of ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ and ‘ Vande Mataram’, hailing the motherland.

Modi had come down heavily on the Congress on Tuesday after its poll promise of banning Bajrang Dal, saying the Congress in its manifesto “has decided to lock up Lord Hanuman. Initially, they locked up Prabhu Shri Ram (Lord Ram). And now they want to lock up people who say ‘Jai Bajrang Bali’ (Hail Hanuman).”

On Wednesday, he made it a point at the beginning as well as at the end of his speech to raise the slogan praising Lord Hanuman in Mulki in Dakshina Kannada district, Ankola in Uttara Kannada and Bailhongal in Belagavi.

The BJP, its Karnataka unit and other party leaders also tweeted on Wednesday with the hashtag ‘HanumaBhaktaModi’. The BJP had termed the Congress move as an “insult” to Lord Hanuman and the ‘height of appeasement”.